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Review: Dreams around the World by Takashi Owaki

Meet thirteen children from around the world who are ready to share their dreams with you! Photographer Takashi Owaki traveled the world, including 55 countries on six continents and interviewed over 1400 children about what they wanted to be when they grew up. In this book, he shares the dreams of some of those children. Each child and their dream is accompanied by photographs, their age, name and country, along with a short paragraph about where they live. At the end of the book, all of the countries are shown on a world map. The book is a celebration of our diversity but also our universal dreams.

Owaki’s photographs are the heart of this book, especially the full-page image of each child looking directly into the camera. The writing itself is simple, speaking to how Owaki met the child and the family they live with. The smaller images with each story also help give context, showing activities and the environment. My only quibble with the book is that it would have been nice to have the map done in a smaller way with each child to help with understanding the geography.

Originally published in Japan, this is a book that celebrates our world and the beauty of dreams. Appropriate for ages 5-8.